Video: Rats fly business class on plane

Health inspectors have found 11 rats living under a seat in the business class cabin of a plane from Hong Kong to China.

The rats - a mother and her 10 pups - were found during a routine inspection, reports Business Insider, and no damage had been done to the plane.

The plane was being taken in for repair at southeast China's Xiamen Airport when workers from Xiamen Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau found the 10 baby rats under a seat of a business class cabin.

Authorities realised the rats were newborns, unable to even open their eyes yet, so began searching for their mother. They found her next to the nest the following day, reports the Southeast Morning Post.

According to the Shanghai Daily, quarantine authorities said it was the most rats they had ever found on an inbound plane.

The Daily Mail reports that the aircraft's cabin was closed while the airport launched a public health emergency plan.

But tests showed no viruses had been left behind by the animals, and the plane was given the all-clear for use.